J-League Cup 2015

About

Vegalta Sendai was first established in 1988 under the name Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc. Soccer Club. They would later become known as Brummell Sendai, before adopting their current name when they moved to the J-League. Since entering the J-League system in 1999, the club have bounced between the first and second tier several times. The team's traditional rivals are Montedio Yamagata, and that rivalry dates back to the early 1990s.

Having started out in the Tohoku Regional League, the club gained promotion to the Japan Football League in 1995. They remained in this division until 1999, when they entered J-League Division Two. After three seasons in the division, Vegalta Sendai finished in 2nd place in 2001 and gained promotion to the top flight for the first time, ahead of the 2002 campaign.

To date, Vegalta Sendai have failed to win for any of the country's major honours. At the end of 2003, they were relegated back to Division 2. The club would not return to the top flight until 2010. However, in recent seasons, the team have competed near the top of the league. In 2011, they finished the season in 4th place, which was their best finish up until that point. The following year, they improved once again and ended the campaign as the league runners up, behind Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

A number of full Japanese internationals have represented the club. Some of the most notable examples include Yoshiteru Yamashita, Teruo Iwamoto, Shigetatsu Matsunaga, Shigeyoshi Mochizuki and Hajime Moriyasu.

Vegalta Sendai play most of their home games at Yurtec Stadium Sendai, which was formerly known as Sendai Stadium. The venue opened in 1997 and is able to hold up to 19,694 spectators. However, for more high-profile matches, the nearby Miyagi Stadium is used instead. It has a capacity of 49,133.